6 Key Considerations in Specifying AVL for Churches

The phrase “audio, video, and lighting” conjures up images of sleek boxes, flashy fixtures, and giant screens displaying crystal clear images. While all this is exciting to tech aficionados and tinkerers alike, in the church environment a good AVL design goes above and beyond the gear.

Here are some things to consider ...

1. Watch their language

Donnie Haulk, president and CEO at AE Global Media Inc., an acoustics and AVL design firm based in Charlotte, N.C., underlines that when designing systems, the most important factor to consider is the church’s worship style. Designers, he says, must make the effort to truly understand how that specific church wants to worship in the space. “[We have to] be able to define the words and descriptions used by the pastor and staff to achieve the desired effect, because [they will use phrases like] ‘dynamic,’ and ‘we have great worship,’ and ‘we have an awesome praise band.’ But what does that mean?” he illustrates. “Dynamic, exciting worship” may mean one thing to a Methodist pastor, and something entirely different to someone charged with leading worship in a Presbyterian church. “It’s on the designer to understand what they mean when they use those words.”

At Church of the Highlands in Birmingham, Ala., Production Manager Justin Firesheets seeks to build relationships with AVL firms that go further than focusing on equipment. “Churches need a ministry partner, not a retailer,” he says. “I need to partner with someone who understands our vision and [who] is committed to helping our organization achieve that vision. You can’t just sell me a cookie cutter system and convince me that it’s going to meet my needs.” A good partner, he says, will spend time with his team and attend the church’s services so that they can gain an understanding of what Highlands is all about, and the goals its striving to accomplish. A not-so-good partner will concentrate on the short term. “Technology and systems are going to change and come and go, but the lasting impact of a project is the people I did it with. Those are the people that I need to be able to call for help down the road, and hopefully those are the people that I can call when I need to do a new project when my tech needs do change.”

3. Design for the future

Budgetary restrictions often push churches to make compromises; many times, they’re not able to build everything they’d conceived of straight away because they simply don’t have the financing. The common solution to this is phasing construction, and Haulk notes that the initial phase should focus on infrastructure. “Phase One is the first step in getting them there,” he says. “We design for what they want to do ultimately, and we make sure that the building will ultimately do what they want to do, and that they have conduit, they have power, and they have [the structure in place].”

4. Think about the volunteers

The majority of churches rely on volunteers to operate AVL systems, and some more heavily than others. Church of the Highlands, for example, currently has 14 campuses across Alabama, and Firesheets explains that many of its satellite locations are “staffed” almost exclusively with volunteer techs during weekend services. This means that the systems must be user friendly, and they’re also standardized as much as possible so that volunteers may circulate from campus to campus––wherever they’re needed on any given Sunday––without worrying about having to run systems they’re not familiar with. A standardized––or at least consistent––approach to systems design also facilitates troubleshooting and maintenance for full-time tech staff.

5. Use the tools

One of the challenges––and joys––of design is that no two spaces are alike. Tools like AFMG’s Ease (Enhanced Acoustic Simulator for Engineers) software suite allow designers to test their acoustic and audio designs long before the gear arrives––or the purchase order is submitted.

6. Commit to your design

Firesheets notes that when a church succeeds in achieving its goals, AVL designers share in that success. “When the systems and equipment all work properly, and we’re able to take big steps forward organizationally, it’s a testament to your competence as an organization that you helped us get there,” he says. For Firesheets, this means that AVL designers must be committed to seeing a project through. “When it’s the 11th hour and we’re [rushing] to get things wrapped up, don’t nickel-and-dime me with change orders. If we’re in this boat together as a family, then we both need to be committed to doing whatever it takes to make the project work.”

For Haulk, shifting the focus away from the gear first is paramount to achieving the church’s ultimate goal: communicating a message. “Everything churches do is about communicating,” he says. “We want to be able to accurately design a communications system that is suitable to the style of ministry that a ministry produces. And so in order to be able to design an effective communications system, we have to define what’s being communicated, and how it’s being communicated … it’s not about a microphone, it’s not about a camera. It’s about the worship experience and designing everything to work together.”